Large recalls are disastrous. No surprise there. Somewhat alarmingly, Toyota can't know what the long-term impact will be on the minds of North American (or global) buyers for Toyotas of any stripe, regardless of whether they were involved in the latest recall or not. What's more, Toyota is also forced to watch as consumers hear smatterings of the story - Toyota, recall, unintended, acceleration, floormats - yet understand little of its seriousness, or lack thereof. Regardless, Toyota took a whipping in auto sales this past month. Much of this is due to the sales suspension of some of the brand's most popular models. The Good Car Guy has already gone in-depth to explain how much this recall affects Toyota day-by-day. The brand's placement below Chevrolet and Ford, way below Chevy and Ford, is a sure sign of what's going on in Toyota showrooms right now.
Volkswagen makes a strong surge in to the Top 10 this month. Hyundai's push continues but can be seen more clearly in the Canada Auto Sales post from yesterday where Honda fell behind the Korean giant. Take a look at the Graph below for full Numbers. Check out December's figures here or the 2009 Year End Sales Stats here. Keep in mind, this is the first month where "Ram" was listed separately from "Dodge". Ram was responsible for 11,032 sales in January.
PRedictions: Honda overtakes Toyota in at least 2 months of 2010. Hyundai beats Honda one month. VW stays in top 10 every month. Now I said it so it won't happen
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